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A tribute to Senator Edward M. Kennedy

Conference Report on the National Cancer Act of 1971, December 8, 1971

The National Cancer Act of 1971 was one of Senator Edward Kennedy's early legislative achievements in health care.
It established a national goal "to conquer cancer at the earliest possible date" and dramatically increased national funding
for cancer research. Kennedy biographer, Adam Clymer, wrote that President Richard Nixon insisted that Kennedy's name come off the bill
as the price for his support and that Kennedy declared that condition "no problem." Although the bill as introduced lists
Colorado Republican Senator Peter Dominick as the sponsor, the December 8, 1971
Conference Report indicates that Kennedy chaired the conference committee and was instrumental in the bill's passage.